Communication Skills for the Healthcare Professional

Dean of Science, Engineering, and Mathematics, Bunker Hill Community College, Boston, Massachusetts

• Part I: Principles of CommunicationChapter 1: The Communication ProcessIntroductionTherapeutic Communication A Definition of CommunicationThe Five Steps of the Communication ProcessChapter 2: Nonverbal CommunicationIntroductionTypes of Nonverbal CommunicationProper Nonverbal Communication Skills for the Healthcare ProfessionalChapter 3: Verbal CommunicationIntroductionDefinition of Verbal CommunicationThe Purposes of Using Clear Language for Effective Verbal Communication with PatientsImportant Practices for Effective Verbal Communication with Patients and Other HCPsDeveloping Skills for Listening and Paraphrasing What the Patient SaysProviding Empathy and Understanding to the PatientQuestioning the PatientSome Do’s and Don’t’s of Verbal Communication Part II: Clinical Communication SkillsChapter 4: Professional Communication and BehaviorIntroductionEssential Interpersonal Skills for the Healthcare ProfessionalEffective Therapeutic Communication Skills and StrategiesRoadblocks to Therapeutic Communication Part I – the Healthcare Professional’s BehaviorRoadblocks to Therapeutic Communication Part II – the Patient’s BehaviorCommunication with Other Members of the Healthcare Team – Your ColleaguesCommunication with Other Members of the Healthcare Team – Your SupervisorHIPAA – The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act – and Patient PrivacyChapter 5: Interviewing TechniquesIntroductionThe IntervieweeThe SettingTypes of QuestionsThe HCP-centered Interview vs. the Patient-centered InterviewInterviewing GuidelinesPinpointing the Chief Complaint or Present IllnessInterviewing Children and AdolescentsLegal Restrictions and Ethical IssuesChapter 6: Adapting Communication to a Patient’s Ability to UnderstandIntroductionHealth LiteracyLanguage BarriersVisual ImpairmentDeafness and Hearing LossAdvanced AgeDelirium and DementiaChapter 7: Patient EducationIntroductionApproach to Patient EducationStrategies and Resources for Patient InstructionChapter 8: Cultural Sensitivity in Healthcare CommunicationIntroductionA More Multicultural and Ethnically Diverse Society Disparities in Treatment and Access to Health CareDefining Cultural Competence and Some Ideas about ItNonverbal Communication in Cross-cultural ContextsThe National Standards on Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS)Tips for Improving Cross-Cultural Communication between HCP and PatientCommunicating with Limited-English-Speaking PatientsThe Need for a Medical InterpreterPart III: Administrative Communication SkillsChapter 9: Electronic CommunicationIntroductionTelecommunicationFacsimile, or FaxEmailChapter 10: Fundamental Writing SkillsIntroductionParts of SpeechPunctuationSentence ErrorsParagraphing BasicsThe Basics of Soap Notes